Community demands stronger efforts against ‘Hub of Heroin’ in South Bronx

Concerned residents are demanding more be done to combat the opioid epidemic in the South Bronx.

Despite the city’s efforts to combat the problem, residents say the area of the Bronx known as the Hub is still very much the “Hub of Heroin.” Residents say 150th Street is ridden with syringes and needles.

Mayor Bill de Blasio announced in November that the city would commit $8 million to programs geared specifically to combatting addiction and overdose in the Bronx. But many are accusing him of failing to bring change.

A recent New York Post story criticized de Blasio’s plan to encourage users to safely dispose of needles in locked containers in Bronx parks, citing a dismal success rate.

The Take Back the Hub Committee collects needles near the Hub every Tuesday night to prove to the city that illegal drug sales and drug use are still rampant.